Aircraft Was Returning From Fly-Fishing Trip

Officials have identified three of the four victims of a weekend floatplane accident in Alaska's Katmai National Park and Preserve... as investigators work to determine what caused the Helio Courier to go down.

The men were returning to Royal Wolf Lodge after a day of fly-fishing when their plane impacted trees near Nonvianuk Lake, about 50 miles northeast of King Salmon, NTSB Alaska office chief Jim LaBelle told the Anchorage Daily News.

Authorities said Greg Brophy, CEO of Canada-based Securit Information Security, was lost in the Sunday accident, along with his brother, Sean; guide Tom Beatty; and the still-unidentified pilot. The aircraft went down sometime before 1600 local time; the wreckage was located at about 2230.

Conditions in King Salmon were less than ideal at the time of the accident, according to Park Service spokesman John Quinley... although not unflyable, and certainly not unusual for Alaska. A light rain was falling, with an overcast ceiling between 2,500 and 3,000 feet and winds between 10-20 mph.

"It wasn’t a bright, clear day, but it doesn’t seem like it was a horrible, zero-visibility day," he said. The area where the aircraft crashed is also largely void of mountains.

The Helio Courier was operated by Branham Adventures.

IDENTIFICATION
  Regis#: 292BA        Make/Model: H295      Description: HELIO
  Date: 10/01/2007     Time: 0000

  Event Type: Accident   Highest Injury: Fatal     Mid Air: N    Missing: N
  Damage: Unknown

LOCATION
  City: KING SALMON   State: AK   Country: US

DESCRIPTION
  AIRCRAFT CRASHED UNDER UNKNOWN CIRCUMSTANCES, THE 4 PERSONS ON BOARD WERE
  FATALLY INJURED, KING SALMON, AK

INJURY DATA      Total Fatal:   4
                 # Crew:   1     Fat:   1     Ser:   0     Min:   0     Unk:   
                 # Pass:   3     Fat:   3     Ser:   0     Min:   0     Unk:   
                 # Grnd:         Fat:   0     Ser:   0     Min:   0     Unk:   

WEATHER: NOT REPORTED

OTHER DATA
  Activity: Unknown      Phase: Unknown      Operation: OTHER

  FAA FSDO: ANCHORAGE, AK  (AL03)                 Entry date: 10/01/2007

FMI: www.faa.gov